THE entertainment world goes through phases all the time, but one that seems to have always stuck around in some form has been the supernatural.
Vampires were hot some ten years ago with YA books like TWILIGHT and VAMPIRE ACADEMY and VAMPIRE DIARIES which brought them to a much younger audience than that of books like INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE or movies like BLADE and shows like TRUE BLOOD. It seemed for a time that we were saturated in them. But the supernatural elements of vampires, werewolves, and ghouls and goblins never really disappear. They just lay low for a while.
Sometime last year I saw a post on Twitter’s #mswl (manuscript wishlist) where agents were asking for vampire novels, and the internet went wild. To sum up the tweets, vampires need a comeback. Not long after that there were calls for witches and werewolves and folks, I am HERE FOR IT.
When Renée Ahdieh announced her new YA title, THE BEAUTIFUL, fans went wild. Not long after that, fellow best-selling author, Jay Kristoff announced his own, EMPIRE OF THE VAMPIRE. Olivia Wildenstein released her YA werewolf novel, PACK OF BLOOD AND LIES in April (if you haven’t picked that one up, do it NOW!) with the sequel releasing soon.
Witches never seem to go away, and authors keep coming up with brand new ways to portray them. SERPENT and DOVE by SHELBY MAHURIN is one that is releasing this year that comes to mind. Also, THE BLOOD HEIR by Amelie Zao.
But where are my werewolves? SHIVER by Maggie Stiefvater had a good long run with her Mercy Falls series, NIGHTSHADE, and Patricia Briggs with her Mercy Thompson series and Alpha and Omega dominate the NA crowd. So, where are they in the YA world?
With UNSPOKEN, I did not initially intend it to be a shifter novel. But, as a pantser, I let the ideas flow as I write and never truly plan ahead of time. So, when the story took hold and formed, I found myself face to face with a sort of werewolf story-line that, after much research, shifted (no pun intended) into something much much more than the usual trope.
I have always had an obsession with wolves. They peek into my stories in subtle ways and, in the case of UNSPOKEN, massive ways. I once wrote a book when I was younger called The Leader of the Pack, which was essentially The Lion King with wolves. After that, I wrote another about a princess and her wolf guardian. After UNSPOKEN, I found myself making the wolf a central, but ambiguous character in my King Arthur retelling IRON to LACE (unpublished and under revision currently) and a spooky Red Riding Hood retelling, EVERY BROKEN THING (still underway)
Wolves are not going anywhere in my writing. But stick around because I promise you they will not get boring.
The Gwylis in UNSPOKEN is taken from Welsh mythology and, like the werewolves of legend that you know, they are cursed. But this curse they did to themselves by making a pact with demons for power to overcome their enemies. So, ultimately, what we have is both a curse and a gift. I twisted up what people knew and made it my own. If you want wolves, I have wolves: killer ones, good ones, and ones with serious bad attitudes with book-boyfriend hair.
That all being said, I’d like to present the cover:
Isn’t it gorgeous????!!! The team at PARLIAMENT HOUSE PRESS brought the goods! What we see a mashup of the two worlds that our protagonist, Izzy, must choose between; the castle she will inherit or the wilds of the unknown.
Unspoken is up on Goodreads! Add it to your WANT TO READ and any lists of your choosing! https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41180912-unspoken
I would love to hear your thoughts and questions. I’m around any time so connect with me here, or Insta, Twitter, Goodreads, anywhere!
The wolves are coming. Shhhhhhh.
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